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Avanti West Coast
First Trenitalia West Coast Rail, trading as Avanti West Coast, is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia (30%) that operates the West Coast Partnership.
In November 2016, the Department for Transport announced that the InterCity West Coast franchise would be replaced by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). In August 2019, the DfT awarded the WCP franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium. On 8 December 2019, Avanti West Coast took over operations from the prior operating company Virgin Trains, which had run the franchise since 1997. Originally, the franchise was to run until March 2030, and had also been set to operate the initial High Speed 2 (HS2) services from 2026, before project delays moved its expected completion. A combination of poor performance and the abolition of the franchise system led to the end date being revised to October 2026, earlier than the completion of HS2.
Avanti West Coast provides the principal long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland. Its services connect six of the largest cities in the UK – London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, and Edinburgh – which have a combined metropolitan population of over 18 million.
Avanti inherited 56 Class 390 Pendolino high speed electric multiple units and 20 Class 221 Super Voyager diesel-electric multiple units from Virgin Trains. The 390s underwent major refurbishment between 2021 and 2024, and in 2024 the 221s were replaced with new Class 805 bi-mode multiple units and Class 807 electric multiple units.
In November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced that the InterCity West Coast franchise, which was held by Virgin Trains from 1997 to 2019, would be superseded by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). The principal change of the WCP was the inclusion of the High Speed 2 (HS2) services, then envisioned to start around 2026. Accordingly, the DfT required that bidders have experience in operating high-speed trains and the associated infrastructure, which led to all tendering parties either being, or partnering with, an existing high-speed operator.
During June 2017, the DfT announced that three consortia had been shortlisted to bid for the franchise:
In December 2018, the Spanish state-owned company Renfe Operadora joined the MTR-led bid. During April 2019, it was announced that the incumbent Stagecoach-led bid had been disqualified after it had proposed significant changes to the commercial terms, specially in regards to staff pensions. Stagecoach disputed its disqualification and launched a legal challenge to have it overturned. On 17 June 2020 the High Court ruled against the company, deciding that the decision had been lawful.
In August 2019, the DfT awarded the franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium with Avanti West Coast to commence operations on 8 December 2019. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched a merger inquiry into the award of the franchise following a referral from the European Commission. In December 2019 it was announced that the CMA had approved the franchise's award; concerns that limited competition on some routes could lead to higher fares and less availability of cheaper tickets were offset by the agreement of price caps to be present in some regions.
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Avanti West Coast
First Trenitalia West Coast Rail, trading as Avanti West Coast, is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia (30%) that operates the West Coast Partnership.
In November 2016, the Department for Transport announced that the InterCity West Coast franchise would be replaced by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). In August 2019, the DfT awarded the WCP franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium. On 8 December 2019, Avanti West Coast took over operations from the prior operating company Virgin Trains, which had run the franchise since 1997. Originally, the franchise was to run until March 2030, and had also been set to operate the initial High Speed 2 (HS2) services from 2026, before project delays moved its expected completion. A combination of poor performance and the abolition of the franchise system led to the end date being revised to October 2026, earlier than the completion of HS2.
Avanti West Coast provides the principal long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland. Its services connect six of the largest cities in the UK – London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, and Edinburgh – which have a combined metropolitan population of over 18 million.
Avanti inherited 56 Class 390 Pendolino high speed electric multiple units and 20 Class 221 Super Voyager diesel-electric multiple units from Virgin Trains. The 390s underwent major refurbishment between 2021 and 2024, and in 2024 the 221s were replaced with new Class 805 bi-mode multiple units and Class 807 electric multiple units.
In November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced that the InterCity West Coast franchise, which was held by Virgin Trains from 1997 to 2019, would be superseded by the West Coast Partnership (WCP). The principal change of the WCP was the inclusion of the High Speed 2 (HS2) services, then envisioned to start around 2026. Accordingly, the DfT required that bidders have experience in operating high-speed trains and the associated infrastructure, which led to all tendering parties either being, or partnering with, an existing high-speed operator.
During June 2017, the DfT announced that three consortia had been shortlisted to bid for the franchise:
In December 2018, the Spanish state-owned company Renfe Operadora joined the MTR-led bid. During April 2019, it was announced that the incumbent Stagecoach-led bid had been disqualified after it had proposed significant changes to the commercial terms, specially in regards to staff pensions. Stagecoach disputed its disqualification and launched a legal challenge to have it overturned. On 17 June 2020 the High Court ruled against the company, deciding that the decision had been lawful.
In August 2019, the DfT awarded the franchise to the First Trenitalia consortium with Avanti West Coast to commence operations on 8 December 2019. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched a merger inquiry into the award of the franchise following a referral from the European Commission. In December 2019 it was announced that the CMA had approved the franchise's award; concerns that limited competition on some routes could lead to higher fares and less availability of cheaper tickets were offset by the agreement of price caps to be present in some regions.
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